Operation input system, electronic device and mobile terminal

ABSTRACT

Electronic device is linked with a mobile terminal, screen transition of the electronic device is eliminated, and various operation input is performed while confirming operation content from the mobile terminal on a screen of the electronic device. When proximity of the mobile terminal is detected in a state of displaying a specific screen on an operation display portion, an image forming apparatus transmits operation input information associated with the specific screen in advance to the mobile terminal. The mobile terminal displays an operation input screen based on the operation input information transmitted from the image forming apparatus and transmits operation content instructed by a user from the operation input screen to the image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus updates the specific screen in accordance with the operation content transmitted from the mobile terminal.

CROSS-NOTING PARAGRAPH

This non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) on Patent Application No. 2013-266463 filed in JAPAN on Dec. 25,2013, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated herein byreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an operation input system, electronicdevice, a mobile terminal and an operation input method, and, morespecifically, relates to an operation input system which linkselectronic device such as an image forming apparatus with a mobileterminal to enable operation input using the mobile terminal, electronicdevice, a mobile terminal and an operation input method.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

An MFP (Multi-Function Peripheral: digital multi-function peripheral),which is one of image forming apparatuses, is provided with a pluralityof functions such as a printer function, a copying function, a facsimilefunction and a scanner function. Such an image forming apparatuscommonly has a liquid crystal display provided with a touch panelfunction and receives operation input from a user. Moreover, some ofthese image forming apparatuses are provided with a preview displayfunction for displaying a print image (print preview image) on a screenof the liquid crystal display before printing image data. By using thispreview display function, the user is able to confirm a printed matterof the image data on the screen before actually performing print output,and, in addition, is able to perform editing and the like on the screenin a case where the print image on the screen is different from desiredone.

FIG. 13A through FIG. 13E are diagrams explaining a preview displayfunction in a conventional image forming apparatus. In the diagrams,100, 101, 102, 103 and 104 denote a preview screen, an edit button, ascreen of various edit menus, an OK button and a footer, respectively.When a user performs a predetermined operation for the image formingapparatus, the image forming apparatus causes a touch panel screenthereof to display the preview screen 100. Then, a print preview imageof image data is displayed on this preview screen 100.

First, the user sees the preview screen 100 to select a page to beedited (FIG. 13A, S101). Here, “Page 1” is selected by a touch operationof the user. Next, when the user presses (touches) the edit button 101displayed on the preview screen 100 (FIG. 13B, S102), the image formingapparatus switches the touch panel screen and displays the screen ofvarious edit menus 102 on the touch panel screen (FIG. 13C, S103). Inthis screen of various edit menus 102, edit items, for example, such asdouble-side setting, page aggregation, punch setting, header setting,blank sheet skip, book printing, footer setting, background patternsetting, and staple are displayed so as to be selectable by the user.

Then, when the user selects a desired edit item from the screen ofvarious edit menus 102 at S103 above and further presses the OK button103, edited content of the this edit item is reflected in the printpreview image (FIG. 13D, S104). Here, the “footer setting” is selectedby the touch operation of the user, and a date is able to be inserted ina footer.

Then, the image forming apparatus switches the touch panel screen todisplay the preview screen 100 on the touch panel screen again, but theedited content at S104 above is reflected in the preview screen 100.That is, in the case of this example, the date is inserted in the footer104 of the “Page 1” in the preview screen 100 (FIG. 13E, S105). Notethat, in a case where editing is performed also for other “Page 2”,“Page 3”, . . . , processing from S101 is performed repeatedly.

On the other hand, an electronic blackboard which enables handwritinginput by a finger of a user or a stylus by using a large-sized liquidcrystal display and a touch panel has been put into practical use.

FIG. 14A through FIG. 14D are diagrams explaining a handwriting inputfunction in a conventional electronic blackboard. In the diagrams, 110,111, 112 and 113 denote a handwriting input screen, various settingchange buttons, a various setting change screen and a handwriting inputimage, respectively. When a user performs a predetermined operation forthe electronic blackboard, the electronic blackboard causes thehandwriting input screen 110 to display the various setting changebutton 111. Note that, this handwriting input screen 110 allows a touchoperation, and is able to recognize a coordinate and a trace input by afinger of the user or a stylus to display as a handwriting input image.

First, when the user presses (touches) the various setting change button111 displayed on the handwriting input screen 110 (FIG. 14A, S111), theelectronic blackboard displays the various setting change screen 112 onthe handwriting input screen 110 (FIG. 14B, S112). In this varioussetting change screen 112, for example, “stylus type”, “stylus size”,“stylus color” and the like are displayed so as to be selectable by theuser. With the “stylus type”, a shape of a stylus tip is able to be setas a round shape, a square shape, a triangular shape or the like. Withthe “stylus size”, a size of the stylus is able to be set as thick,normal, thin or the like. With the “stylus color”, a color of the stylusis able to be set as black, red, green or the like.

Then, when the user selects desired setting from the various settingchange screen 112 at S112 above and thereafter presses the varioussetting change button 111 to close the various setting change screen 112(FIG. 14C, S113), the electronic blackboard reflects the settingselected by the user at S112 in the handwriting input image 113 by thefinger of the user or the stylus (FIG. 14D, S114). For example, in acase where setting of the stylus is set as “round shape, thick, redcolor”, the handwriting input image 113 input by the user to thehandwriting input screen 110 by the finger or the stylus is displayed soas to be “round shape, thick, red color”.

However, for the operation input explained in FIG. 13A through FIG. 13Eand FIG. 14A through FIG. 14D above, screen transition occurs aplurality of times, and there is a problem that user convenience ispoor. Moreover, each time the number of functions increases, hierarchybecomes deeper, and the number of times of operations increases untilthe user reaches a required function, so that there is a problem that aburden on the user is large, as well.

Against this, technologies by which electronic device such as an imageforming apparatus or an electronic blackboard is linked with a mobileterminal such as a smart phone to improve user convenience are variouslyproposed. For example, in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No.2012-89161, a system composed of an image forming apparatus, a serverand a mobile terminal is described. According to this, when the mobileterminal is held over the server, the server performs userauthentication, and generates menu information corresponding to anexecution state of the image forming apparatus to transmit to the mobileterminal. The mobile terminal performs selection of a desired serviceand a set value from among the menu information acquired from theserver, and is held over the server again. The server acquires selectionresponse information from the mobile terminal, and controls the imageforming apparatus so as to execute the service designated by thisinformation.

However, by the invention described in Japanese Laid-Open PatentPublication No. 2012-89161 above, the image forming apparatus is able tobe controlled corresponding to operation input from the mobile terminal,but, due to necessity of being through the server, a user is not able toknow how content input from the mobile terminal is being reflected inthe image forming apparatus.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been made in view of circumstances asdescribed above, and aims to provide an operation input system whichlinks electronic device such as an image forming apparatus with a mobileterminal and eliminates screen transition of the electronic device sothat a user is able to perform various operation input while confirmingoperation content from the mobile terminal on a screen of the electronicdevice, electronic device, a mobile terminal and an operation inputmethod.

An object of the present invention is to provide an operation inputsystem, comprising an electronic device having a display portion and amobile terminal capable of near distance wireless communication with theelectronic device, wherein the electronic device is provided with atransmitting portion which, when proximity of the mobile terminal isdetected in a state of displaying a specific screen on the displayportion, transmits operation input information associated with thespecific screen in advance to the mobile terminal, the mobile terminalis provided with a display portion which displays an operation inputscreen based on the operation input information transmitted from theelectronic device, and a transmitting portion which transmits operationcontent instructed by a user from the operation input screen to theelectronic device, and the electronic device is provided with anupdating portion which updates the specific screen in accordance withthe operation content transmitted from the mobile terminal.

Another object of the present invention is to provide the operationinput system, wherein when connection of the near distance wirelesscommunication with the mobile terminal is established, the electronicdevice establishes connection of other wireless communication capable oflonger-distance wireless communication than the near distance wirelesscommunication with the mobile terminal.

Another object of the present invention is to provide the operationinput system, wherein as the operation input information, thetransmitting portion of the electronic device transmits ID informationof an operation input item associated with the specific screen inadvance to the mobile terminal, the mobile terminal is provided with astorage portion in which operation input screen information associatedwith the ID information of the operation input item is stored, and thedisplay portion of the mobile terminal displays the operation inputscreen in accordance with the operation input screen information storedin the storage portion.

Another object of the present invention is to provide the operationinput system, wherein as the operation input information, thetransmitting portion of the electronic device transmits operation inputscreen information including ID information of an operation input itemassociated with the specific screen in advance to the mobile terminal,and the display portion of the mobile terminal displays the operationinput screen in accordance with the operation input screen information.

Another object of the present invention is to provide the operationinput system, wherein the operation input item is set by the user inadvance.

Another object of the present invention is to provide the operationinput system, wherein in a case where the electronic device is an imageforming apparatus, the specific screen is a preview screen, and theoperation input item is an item concerning editing of a print previewimage displayed on the preview screen.

Another object of the present invention is to provide the operationinput system, wherein in a case where the electronic device is anelectronic blackboard, the specific screen is a handwriting inputscreen, and the operation input item is an item concerning editing of ahandwriting input image displayed on the handwriting input screen.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an electronicdevice having a display portion and capable of near distance wirelesscommunication with a mobile terminal, wherein the electronic device isprovided with a transmitting portion which, when proximity of the mobileterminal is detected in a state of displaying a specific screen on thedisplay portion, transmits operation input information associated withthe specific screen in advance to the mobile terminal, a receivingportion which receives operation content instructed by a user for theoperation input information from the mobile terminal, and an updatingportion which updates the specific screen in accordance with theoperation content received by the receiving portion.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile terminalcapable of near distance wireless communication with an electronicdevice having a display portion, wherein the mobile terminal is providedwith a receiving portion which, when coming close to the electronicdevice in a state of having a specific screen displayed on the displayportion, receives ID information of an operation input item associatedwith the specific screen in advance from the electronic device, astorage portion which stores operation input screen informationassociated with the ID information of the operation input item, adisplay portion which displays an operation input screen in accordancewith the operation input screen information stored by the storageportion, and a transmitting portion which transmits operation contentinstructed by a user from the operation input screen to the electronicdevice, and causes the specific screen of the electronic device to beupdated in accordance with the operation content transmitted by thetransmitting portion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an exemplary configuration of an operationinput system according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an exemplary configuration of anoperation input system according to a first embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B are flowcharts explaining exemplary processing of animage forming apparatus shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart explaining exemplary processing of a mobileterminal shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5A through FIG. 5C are diagrams showing one example of screentransition;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing one example of a possible and impossiblecombination table;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart explaining exemplary processing of an imageforming apparatus according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing one example of a WiFi pairing setting screendisplayed on the image forming apparatus;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an exemplary configuration of anoperation input system according to a third embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 10A through FIG. 10C are diagrams explaining exemplary processingof the operation input system according to the third embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 11A through FIG. 11C are diagrams explaining another exemplaryprocessing of the operation input system according to the thirdembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12A through FIG. 12D are diagrams explaining still anotherexemplary processing of the operation input system according to thethird embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13A through FIG. 13E are diagrams explaining a preview displayfunction in a conventional image forming apparatus; and

FIG. 14A through FIG. 14D are diagrams explaining a handwriting inputfunction in a conventional electronic blackboard.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Description will hereinafter be given for preferred embodimentsaccording to an operation input system, electronic device, a mobileterminal and an operation input method of the present invention withreference to accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an exemplary configuration of an operationinput system according to the present invention, and 1 denoteselectronic device and 2 denotes a mobile terminal in the diagram. Theelectronic device 1 has a display portion such as a liquid crystaldisplay and is able to be exemplified, for example, as an image formingapparatus and an electronic blackboard explained in FIG. 13A throughFIG. 13E and FIG. 14A through FIG. 14D above, and the like. In addition,the mobile terminal 2 may be a tablet terminal, for example, including asmart phone and a mobile phone. The electronic device 1 and the mobileterminal 2 are able to be connected with each other by near distancewireless communication (also referred to as short distance wirelesscommunication), for example, such as NFC (Near Field Communication).

(First Embodiment)

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an exemplary configuration of anoperation input system according to a first embodiment of the presentinvention. The system of this example is composed of an image formingapparatus 1 a which is one example of the electronic device 1 and themobile terminal 2 capable of near distance wireless communication withthe image forming apparatus 1 a. The image forming apparatus 1 a is ableto be exemplified as an MFP (digital multi-function peripheral) having aplurality of functions such as a printer function, a copying function, afacsimile function and a scanner function, but may be a printer or acopier having a single function.

The image forming apparatus 1 a is provided with a document readingportion 11 a which optically reads a document image to input image data,an image forming portion 12 a which forms an image based on the imagedata, an image processing portion 13 a which applies various imageprocessing to the image data, an operation display portion 14 a whichhas a touch panel, a control portion 15 a composed of a CPU controllingoperations of the image forming apparatus 1 a, a memory and the like, astorage portion 16 a such as a hard disk or a semiconductor memory, anoperation input portion 17 a which includes a numeric key pad andvarious operation keys, a wireless LAN (Local Area Network)-I/F(interface) 18 a which performs wireless LAN communication such as WiFiwith the mobile terminal 2, and a near distance wireless communicationportion 19 a which performs near distance wireless communication such asNFC with the mobile terminal 2.

The mobile terminal 2 is provided with a near distance wirelesscommunication portion 21 which performs near distance wirelesscommunication such as NFC with the image forming apparatus 1 a, astorage portion 22 such as a semiconductor memory, a wireless LAN-I/F 23which performs wireless LAN communication such as WiFi with the imageforming apparatus 1 a, a control portion 24 composed of a CPUcontrolling operations of the mobile terminal 2, a memory and the like,an operation display portion 25 which has a touch panel, and aphotographing portion 26 composed of an imaging element such as a CCD(Charge Coupled Device).

In the present embodiment, the image forming apparatus is linked withthe mobile terminal and screen transition of the image forming apparatusis eliminated so that a user is able to perform various operation inputwhile confirming operation content from the mobile terminal on a screenof the image forming apparatus. For such a configuration, the imageforming apparatus 1 a is provided with a transmitting portion which,when proximity of the mobile terminal 2 is detected in a state ofdisplaying a specific screen on the operation display portion 14 a(corresponding to a display portion of the electronic device of thepresent invention), transmits operation input information associatedwith the specific screen in advance to the mobile terminal 2. Thistransmitting portion corresponds to a transmitting portion of theelectronic device of the present invention and is realized by thecontrol portion 15 a and the near distance wireless communicationportion 19 a of the image forming apparatus 1 a. More specifically, whenthe user holds the mobile terminal 2 over the operation display portion14 a of the image forming apparatus 1 a, the near distance wirelesscommunication portion 19 a of the image forming apparatus 1 a detectsproximity of the mobile terminal 2, and the near distance wirelesscommunication portion 19 a of the image forming apparatus 1 a and thenear distance wireless communication portion 21 of the mobile terminal 2have a communication protocol, for example, based on NFC establishedtherebetween to be connected so as to allow communication with eachother.

Moreover, examples of the specific screen displayed on the operationdisplay portion 14 a of the image forming apparatus 1 a include previewscreens shown in FIG. 13A through FIG. 13E above. Further, the operationinput information transmitted from the image forming apparatus 1 a tothe mobile terminal 2 is ID information of an operation input itemassociated with a preview screen in advance or operation input screeninformation including the ID information of the operation input itemassociated with the preview screen in advance. As the operation inputitem, edit items such as double-side setting, page aggregation, punchsetting, header setting, blank sheet skip, book printing, footersetting, background pattern setting and staple may be set as they are asshown in FIG. 13A through FIG. 13E, or only the edit item which isfrequently used by the user among these edit items may be setselectively. Specifically, for example, only double-side setting, headersetting and footer setting are associated with the preview screen inadvance. In addition, the ID information of the operation input items isinformation for discriminating these operation input items and notifyingoperation content according to the operation input items (such asoperation code information). The image forming apparatus 1 a iscontrolled so as to execute the operation content notified with this IDinformation. Moreover, the operation input screen information in thisexample is screen data for displaying the above-described operationinput items on the screen.

The mobile terminal 2 is provided with a receiving portion whichreceives, when coming close to the image forming apparatus 1 a in astate of having a preview screen displayed on the operation displayportion 14 a, operation input information associated with a previewscreen in advance from the image forming apparatus 1 a, a displayportion which displays an operation input screen based on the receivedoperation input information, and a transmitting portion which transmitsoperation content (that is, ID information) instructed by the user fromthe operation input screen to the image forming apparatus 1 a. Notethat, this display portion corresponds to a display portion of themobile terminal of the present invention and is realized by theoperation display portion 25 of the mobile terminal 2. Moreover, thereceiving portion and the transmitting portion correspond to a receivingportion and a transmitting portion of the mobile terminal of the presentinvention, and are realized by the control portion 24 and the neardistance wireless communication portion 21 of the mobile terminal 2.Here, as a method for displaying the operation input screen on theoperation display portion 25 of the mobile terminal 2, two differentmethods are considered according to content of the operation inputinformation transmitted from the image forming apparatus 1 a.

First, as a first method, description will be given for a case where theoperation input information is ID information of an operation inputitem. In this case, the mobile terminal 2 is provided with a storageportion in which operation input screen information associated with theID information of the operation input item is stored, and the operationdisplay portion 25 displays an operation input screen in accordance withthe operation input screen information stored by this storage portion.Note that, this storage portion corresponds to a storage portion of themobile terminal of the present invention and is realized by the storageportion 22 of the mobile terminal 2. That is, according to the firstmethod, the image forming apparatus 1 a transmits the ID information ofthe operation input item associated with the preview screen in advanceto the mobile terminal 2. The operation input screen information isstored in the storage portion 22 of the mobile terminal 2 in associationwith the ID information of the operation input item, and the operationdisplay portion 25 displays an operation input screen as shown in FIG.5B described below in accordance with the operation input screeninformation stored in the storage portion 22.

Further, as a second method, description will be given for a case whereoperation input information is operation input screen informationincluding ID information of an operation input item. In this case, theoperation display portion 25 of the mobile terminal 2 displays anoperation input screen in accordance with the operation input screeninformation received from the image forming apparatus 1 a. That is,according to the second method, the operation input screen informationincluding the ID information of the operation input item associated withthe preview screen in advance is stored in the storage portion 16 a ofthe image forming apparatus 1 a, and this operation input screeninformation is transmitted to the mobile terminal 2. Then, the operationdisplay portion 25 of the mobile terminal 2 displays the operation inputscreen in accordance with the operation input screen information fromthe image forming apparatus 1 a. Note that, when a screen resolution ofthe mobile terminal 2 is not known in the image forming apparatus 1 aside, the image forming apparatus 1 a may obtain the screen resolutionof the mobile terminal 2 when being connected to the mobile terminal 2through near distance wireless communication so as to be able to convertthe operation input screen information as appropriate according to thisscreen resolution.

Furthermore, the image forming apparatus 1 a is provided with areceiving portion which receives the operation content (ID information)instructed by the user from the mobile terminal 2 and an updatingportion which updates the preview screen in accordance with the receivedoperation content. Note that, this receiving portion corresponds to areceiving portion of the electronic device of the present invention andis realized by the control portion 15 a and the near distance wirelesscommunication portion 19 a of the image forming apparatus 1 a. Moreover,the updating portion corresponds to an updating portion of theelectronic device of the present invention and is realized as onefunction of the control portion 15 a of the image forming apparatus 1 a.Description will be given below for a specific example of the operationinput method according to the operation input system above based on FIG.3A and FIG. 3B to FIG. 6.

FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B are flowcharts explaining exemplary processing ofthe image forming apparatus 1 a shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a flowchartexplaining exemplary processing of the mobile terminal 2 shown in FIG.2. In FIG. 3A, first, the image forming apparatus 1 a displays a previewscreen 141 a shown in FIG. 5A on the operation display portion 14 aaccording to predetermined operation input by the user (step S1). In anexample of FIG. 5A, “Page 1”, “Page 2”, “Page 3”, . . . are displayed asprint preview images. Then, when the mobile terminal 2 comes close tothe image forming apparatus 1 a in a state where the preview screen 141a is displayed, the image forming apparatus 1 a judges whether or notconnection of near distance wireless communication with the mobileterminal 2 is established (step S2).

Next, when judging that connection of near distance wirelesscommunication with the mobile terminal 2 is established at step S2 above(in the case of YES), the image forming apparatus 1 a judges whether ornot there is a transmission request of operation input information fromthe mobile terminal 2 (step S3). On the other hand, when it is judgedthat connection of near distance wireless communication with the mobileterminal 2 is not established at step S2 above (in the case of NO), theprocedure shifts to a standby state at step S2. When judging that thereis a transmission request of the operation input information from themobile terminal 2 at step S3 above (in the case of YES), the imageforming apparatus 1 a then transmits the operation input informationassociated with the preview screen 141 a in advance to the mobileterminal 2 (step S4), and further transmits a possible and impossiblecombination table of the operation input information shown in FIG. 6 tothe mobile terminal 2 (step S5). In this example, ID information of theedit items which are set in advance by the user, here, double-sidesetting, header setting and footer setting concerning editing of a printpreview image is transmitted as the operation input information. On theother hand, when it is judged that there is no transmission request ofthe operation input information from the mobile terminal 2 at step S3above (in the case of NO), the procedure shifts to a standby state atstep S3.

In the mobile terminal 2, operation input screen information associatedwith the ID Information of double-side setting, header setting andfooter setting, which is transmitted from the image forming apparatus 1a, is stored, and an operation input screen is displayed on theoperation display portion 25 in accordance with this operation inputscreen information. A screen of various edit menus which is one exampleof this operation input screen is shown in FIG. 5B. That is, edit itemscomposed of double-side setting, header setting and footer setting aredisplayed so as to be selectable by the user on the screen of variousedit menus 251 of FIG. 5B.

Here, the possible and impossible combination table of FIG. 6 will beexplained. This possible and impossible combination table is for judgingwhether or not combination is allowed among a plurality of edit itemsdisplayed on the screen of various edit menus 251 of FIG. 5B. An exampleof FIG. 6 is a table configuration when the edit items included in ascreen of various edit menus 102 shown in FIG. 13A through FIG. 13Eabove are targeted, in which items which are allowed to be combined areset as “1” and items which are not allowed to be combined are set as “0”for each edit item of page aggregation, book printing, blank sheet skip,background pattern setting, . . . . For example, in the case of pageaggregation, book printing is not allowed to be combined, and blanksheet skip and background pattern setting are allowed to be combined.That is, when it is assumed that page aggregation, book printing, blanksheet skip and background pattern setting are displayed on the screen ofvarious edit menus 251 of FIG. 5B, if the user selects page aggregation,combination with book printing is not allowed to be selected, andcombination with blank sheet skip and background pattern setting areallowed to be selected.

Then, in a processing flow of FIG. 3B, the image forming apparatus 1 ajudges whether or not separation of the mobile terminal 2 is detected(step S6), and when separation of the mobile terminal 2 is detected,that is, it is judged that the mobile terminal 2 is outside a range ofnear distance wireless communication (in the case of YES), near distancewireless communication is interrupted once, so that while the previewscreen 141 a is being displayed, whether or not the mobile terminal 2 isheld over the preview screen 141 a again and connection of near distancewireless communication with the mobile terminal 2 is established isjudged (step S7). On the other hand, at step S6, when separation of themobile terminal 2 is not detected, that is, it is judged that the mobileterminal 2 is within the range of near distance wireless communication(in the case of NO), the procedure shifts to step S8 while the previewscreen 141 a is being displayed. When judging that connection of neardistance wireless communication with the mobile terminal 2 isestablished at step S7 above (in the case of YES), the image formingapparatus 1 a then judges whether or not there is a reflecting requestof operation content from the mobile terminal 2 (step S8). On the otherhand, when it is judged that connection of near distance wirelesscommunication with the mobile terminal 2 is not established at step S7above (in the case of No), the procedure shifts to a standby state atstep S7.

When judging that there is a reflecting request of operation contentfrom the mobile terminal 2 at step S8 above (in the case of YES), theimage forming apparatus 1 a then receives operation content selected andset by the mobile terminal 2 from the mobile terminal 2 (step S9). Inthe example of FIG. 5B, footer setting is selected and set by the user,and “footer/date” is received as the operation content. On the otherhand, when it is judged that there is no reflecting request of operationcontent from the mobile terminal 2 at step S8 above (in the case of NO),the procedure shifts to a standby state at step S8.

The image forming apparatus 1 a then updates the preview screen 141 a ofthe operation display portion 14 a shown in FIG. 5A based on theoperation content received at step S9, that is, “footer/date” designatedon the screen of various edit menus 251 of FIG. 5B (step S10).Specifically, the user selects one to be edited by a touch operationfrom among the print preview images “Page 1”, “Page 2”, “Page 3”, . . .displayed on the preview screen 141 a. For example, as shown in FIG. 5C,when “Page 1” is selected by the user, a date is automatically insertedin a footer 142 a of this “Page 1”. Note that, if there is a page whichis desired to be edited other than “Page 1”, when the user touches thecorresponding page on the preview screen 141 a, the same content isreflected immediately.

Then, the image forming apparatus 1 a judges whether or not otheroperation content is received from the mobile terminal 2 (step S11), andif judging that other operation content is received (in the case ofYES), repeats processing after returning to step S10, and if not (in thecase of NO), the procedure ends as it is. In this manner, when there area plurality of operation content selected and set by the mobile terminal2, each time operation content is received from the mobile terminal 2,the preview screen 141 a is updated.

Next, a processing flow of the mobile terminal 2 will be explained basedon FIG. 4. First, as shown in FIG. 5A, in a state where the previewscreen 141 a is displayed on the operation display portion 14 a of theimage forming apparatus 1 a, the mobile terminal 2 is held over thepreview screen 141 a. At this time, the mobile terminal 2 judges whetheror not connection of near distance wireless communication with the imageforming apparatus 1 a is established (step S21).

When judging that connection of near distance wireless communicationwith the image forming apparatus 1 a is established at step S21 above(in the case of YES), the mobile terminal 2 requests the image formingapparatus 1 a to transmit operation input information (step S22). Themobile terminal 2 then receives the operation input informationassociated with the preview screen 141 a in advance from the imageforming apparatus 1 a (step S23), and further receives a possible andimpossible combination table of the operation input information shown inFIG. 6 from the image forming apparatus 1 a (step S24). In this example,in the same manner as the processing flow of FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B, IDinformation of the edit items which are set in advance by the user,here, double-side setting, header setting and footer setting concerningediting of a print preview image is received as the operation inputinformation. On the other hand, when it is judged that connection ofnear distance wireless communication with the image forming apparatus 1a is not established at step S21 above (in the case of NO), theprocedure shifts to a standby state at step S21.

When receiving the ID information of double-side setting, header settingand footer setting from the image forming apparatus 1 a, the mobileterminal 2 displays an operation input screen on the operation displayportion 25 in accordance with operation input screen information storedin the storage portion 22 (step S25). The screen of various edit menus251 which is one example of this operation input screen is as shown inFIG. 5B. That is, operation input items (edit items) composed ofdouble-side setting, header setting and footer setting are displayed soas to be selectable by the user on the screen of various edit menus 251of FIG. 5B.

The mobile terminal 2 judges whether or not the operation input item isselected by the user from the screen of various edit menus 251 displayedon the operation display portion 25 (step S26), and when judging thatthe operation input item is selected (in the case of YES), judgeswhether or not there is an item which is not able to be combined withthe selected operation input item by referring to the possible andimpossible combination table of FIG. 6 (step S27). On the other hand,when it is judged that the operation input item is not selected at stepS26 (in the case of NO), the procedure shifts to a standby state at stepS26.

When judging that there is an item which is not able to be combined withthe operation input item selected above at step S27 (in the case ofYES), the mobile terminal 2 turns the item which is not able to becombined into a selection disabled state, for example, such as gray outdisplay or non-display on the screen of various edit menus 251 (stepS28). On the other hand, when it is judged that there is no item whichis not able to be combined with the selected operation input item atstep S27 (in the case of NO), the procedure shifts to step S29.

The mobile terminal 2 judges whether or not there is selection of otheroperation input item by the user (step S29), and when judging that thereis selection of other operation input item (in the case of YES), repeatsprocessing after returning to step S27. On the other hand, when it isjudged that there is no selection of other operation input item at stepS29 (in the case of NO), the image forming apparatus 1 a is requested toreflect the operation content selected and set in the screen of variousedit menus 251 of FIG. 5B and the operation content is transmitted tothe image forming apparatus 1 a (step S30). Note that, after the mobileterminal 2 receives the operation input information and the possible andimpossible combination table from the image forming apparatus 1 a atstep S23 and step S24, the mobile terminal 2 may be separated from theimage forming apparatus 1 a. That is, the screen of various edit menus251 of the mobile terminal 2 may be operated in a state where the userseparates the mobile terminal 2 from the image forming apparatus 1 a. Inthis case, when the mobile terminal 2 is caused to come close to thepreview screen 141 a of the image forming apparatus 1 a again, themobile terminal 2 and the image forming apparatus 1 a are connectedthrough near distance wireless communication. The image formingapparatus 1 a is then requested to reflect the operation content fromthe mobile terminal 2 and the above-described operation content istransmitted to the image forming apparatus 1 a.

In this manner, according to the present embodiment, the image formingapparatus is linked with the mobile terminal and screen transition ofthe image forming apparatus is eliminated, so that various operationinput is able to be performed while confirming operation content fromthe mobile terminal on a screen of the image forming apparatus.

(Second Embodiment)

Though near distance wireless communication such as NFC is used forwireless communication of the image forming apparatus 1 a and the mobileterminal 2 in the first embodiment described above, other wirelesscommunication capable of longer-distance wireless communication thanthis near distance wireless communication may be used. For example, WiFiwhich is a kind of wireless LAN, Bluetooth (registered trademark, sameapplies below) suitable for wireless communication of about severalmeters, and the like are applicable. In the exemplary configuration ofFIG. 2, the image forming apparatus 1 a and the mobile terminal 2 arerespectively provided with the wireless LAN-I/F 18 a and the wirelessLAN-I/F 23 and capable of wireless communication by wireless LAN (WiFi).

FIG. 7 is a flowchart explaining exemplary processing of the imageforming apparatus 1 a according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing one example of a WiFi pairingsetting screen displayed on the image forming apparatus 1 a. First, theuser displays the WiFi pairing setting screen of FIG. 8 on the operationdisplay portion 14 a of the image forming apparatus 1 a in advance, andsets whether to make WiFi pairing valid or invalid when connection ofnear distance wireless communication between the image forming apparatus1 a and the mobile terminal 2 is established. In this example, WiFipairing is set to be valid.

In FIG. 7, the image forming apparatus 1 a displays the preview screen141 a shown in FIG. 5A on the operation display portion 14 a accordingto predetermined operation input by the user (step S31). In the exampleof FIG. 5A, “Page 1”, “Page 2”, “Page 3”, . . . are displayed as printpreview images. Then, when the mobile terminal 2 is caused to come closeto the preview screen 141 a in a state where the preview screen 141 a isdisplayed, the image forming apparatus 1 a judges whether or notconnection of near distance wireless communication with the mobileterminal 2 is established (step S32).

When judging that connection of near distance wireless communicationwith the mobile terminal 2 is established at step S32 above (in the caseof YES), the image forming apparatus 1 a refers to the WiFi pairingsetting of FIG. 8, and because it is set to be “valid” here, executeswireless LAN pairing (step S33). On the other hand, when it is judgedthat connection of near distance wireless communication with the mobileterminal 2 is not established at step S32 above (in the case of NO), theprocedure shifts to a standby state at step S32.

The image forming apparatus 1 a judges whether or not connection ofwireless LAN with the mobile terminal 2 is established (step S34). Whenit is judged that connection of wireless LAN with the mobile terminal 2is established (in the case of YES), the near distance wirelesscommunication with the mobile terminal 2 is finished (step S35). On theother hand, when it is judged that connection of wireless LAN with themobile terminal 2 is not established at step S34 (in the case of NO),the procedure shifts to a standby state at step S34.

The image forming apparatus 1 a judges whether or not there is atransmission request of operation input information from the mobileterminal 2 through wireless LAN (step S36), and when judging that thereis a transmission request of operation input information from the mobileterminal 2 (in the case of YES), transmits the operation inputinformation associated with the preview screen 141 a in advance to themobile terminal 2 (step S37), and further transmits the possible andimpossible combination table of the operation input information shown inFIG. 6 to the mobile terminal 2 (step S38). In this example, IDinformation of the edit items which are set in advance by the user,here, double-side setting, header setting and footer setting concerningediting of a print preview image is transmitted as the operation inputinformation. On the other hand, when it is judged that there is notransmission request of the operation input information from the mobileterminal 2 at step S36 above (in the case of NO), the procedure shiftsto a standby state at step S36.

Though the same content explained in the first embodiment describedabove is applied for the mobile terminal 2, when ID information ofdouble-side setting, header setting and footer setting and the possibleand impossible combination table (FIG. 6) are received from the imageforming apparatus 1 a through wireless LAN, an operation input screen isdisplayed on the operation display portion 25 in accordance withoperation input screen information stored in the storage portion 22. Thescreen of various edit menus 251 which is one example of this operationinput screen is as shown in FIG. 5B. That is, edit items composed ofdouble-side setting, header setting and footer setting are displayed soas to be selectable by the user on the screen of various edit menus 251of FIG. 5B. Further, since it is also the same as to the possible andimpossible combination table of FIG. 6, the description is omitted here.

The image forming apparatus 1 a judges whether or not there is areflecting request of operation content from the mobile terminal 2through wireless LAN (step S39), and when judging that there is areflecting request of operation content from the mobile terminal 2 (inthe case of YES), receives the operation content selected and set by themobile terminal 2 from the mobile terminal 2 (step S40). In the exampleof FIG. 5B, footer setting is selected and set by the user, and“footer/date” is received as the operation content. The image formingapparatus 1 a then updates the preview screen 141 a of the operationdisplay portion 14 a shown in FIG. 5A as shown in FIG. 5C based on theoperation content received at step S40, that is, “footer/date”designated on the screen of various edit menus 251 of FIG. 5B (stepS41). On the other hand, when it is judged that there is no reflectingrequest of operation content from the mobile terminal 2 at step S39above (in the case of NO), the procedure shifts to a standby state atstep S39.

Then, the image forming apparatus 1 a judges whether or not otheroperation content is received from the mobile terminal 2 (step S42), andif judging that other operation content is received (in the case ofYES), repeats processing after returning to step S41, and if not (in thecase of NO), the procedure ends as it is. In this manner, when there area plurality of operation content selected and set by the mobile terminal2, each time operation content is received from the mobile terminal 2,the preview screen 141 a is updated.

In this manner, according to the present embodiment, in addition to theeffect by the first embodiment, since the image forming apparatus andthe mobile terminal are connected through wireless LAN, it is notnecessary to hold over the mobile terminal for each operation input andit is possible to perform operation input even from a place relativelyaway from the image forming apparatus.

(Third Embodiment)

Though description has been given by exemplifying the image formingapparatus as the electronic device 1 of FIG. 1 in the first and secondembodiments described above, the embodiment of the electronic device 1is not limited to the image forming apparatus and may be an electronicblackboard which allows performing handwriting input by a finger of theuser or a stylus.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an exemplary configuration of anoperation input system according to a third embodiment of the presentinvention. The system of this example is composed of an electronicblackboard 1 b which is one example of the electronic device 1 and amobile terminal 2 capable of near distance wireless communication withthe electronic blackboard 1 b.

The electronic blackboard 1 b is provided with a storage portion 11 bsuch as such as a hard disk or a semiconductor memory, a near distancewireless communication portion 12 b which performs near distancewireless communication such as NFC with the mobile terminal 2, anoperation display portion 13 b which has a touch panel, a controlportion 14 b composed of a CPU controlling operations of the electronicblackboard 1 b, a memory and the like, an operation input portion 15 bwhich includes a numeric key pad and various operation keys, and awireless LAN-I/F (interface) 16 b which performs wireless LANcommunication such as WiFi with the mobile terminal 2.

The mobile terminal 2 is provided with a near distance wirelesscommunication portion 21, a storage portion 22, a wireless LAN-I/F 23, acontrol portion 24, an operation display portion 25, and a photographingportion 26 in the same manner as the exemplary configuration of FIG. 2.

In the present embodiment, the electronic blackboard is linked with themobile terminal and screen transition of the electronic blackboard iseliminated so that a user is able to perform various operation inputwhile confirming operation content from the mobile terminal on a screenof the electronic blackboard. For such a configuration, the electronicblackboard 1 b is provided with a transmitting portion which, whenproximity of the mobile terminal 2 is detected in a state of having aspecific screen displayed on the operation display portion 13 b(corresponding to a display portion of the electronic device of thepresent invention), transmits operation input information associatedwith the specific screen in advance to the mobile terminal 2. Thistransmitting portion corresponds to a transmitting portion of theelectronic device of the present invention and is realized by thecontrol portion 14 b and the near distance wireless communicationportion 12 b of the electronic blackboard 1 b. More specifically, whenthe user holds the mobile terminal 2 over the operation display portion13 b of the electronic blackboard 1 b, the near distance wirelesscommunication portion 12 b of the electronic blackboard 1 b detectsproximity of the mobile terminal 2, and the near distance wirelesscommunication portion 12 b of the electronic blackboard 1 b and the neardistance wireless communication portion 21 of the mobile terminal 2 havea communication protocol based on, for example, NFC establishedtherebetween to be connected so as to allow communication with eachother.

Moreover, examples of the specific screen displayed on the operationdisplay portion 13 b of the electronic blackboard 1 b includehandwriting input screens shown in FIG. 14A through FIG. 14D above.Further, the operation input information transmitted from the electronicblackboard 1 b to the mobile terminal 2 is ID information of anoperation input item associated with a handwriting input screen inadvance or operation input screen information including the IDinformation of the operation input item associated with the handwritinginput screen in advance. As the operation input item, edit items such asa type, a size and a color of a stylus may be set as they are as shownin FIG. 14A through FIG. 14D, or only the edit item which is frequentlyused by the user among these edit items may be set selectively.Specifically, for example, only a stylus color is associated with thehandwriting input screen in advance. In addition, the ID information ofthe operation input items is information for discriminating theseoperation input items and notifying operation content according to theoperation input items. The electronic blackboard 1 b is controlled so asto execute the operation content notified with this ID information.Moreover, the operation input screen information is information of asize, arrangement and the like for displaying the above-describedoperation input items on a screen as icons.

The mobile terminal 2 is provided with a receiving portion which, whencoming close to the electronic blackboard 1 b in a state of having ascreen displayed on the operation display portion 13 b, receivesoperation input information associated with the handwriting input screenin advance from the electronic blackboard 1 b, a display portion whichdisplays an operation input screen based on the received operation inputinformation, and a transmitting portion which transmits operationcontent (that is, ID information) instructed by the user from theoperation input screen to the electronic blackboard 1 b. Note that, thisdisplay portion corresponds to a display portion of the mobile terminalof the present invention and is realized by the operation displayportion 25 of the mobile terminal 2. Moreover, the receiving portion andthe transmitting portion correspond to a receiving portion and atransmitting portion of the mobile terminal of the present invention,and are realized by the control portion 24 and the near distancewireless communication portion 21 of the mobile terminal 2. Here, as amethod for displaying the operation input screen on the operationdisplay portion 25 of the mobile terminal 2, in the same manner as thecase of the first embodiment, two different methods are consideredaccording to content of the operation input information transmitted fromthe electronic blackboard 1 b, but repetitive description is omittedhere.

Furthermore, the electronic blackboard 1 b is provided with a receivingportion which receives the operation content (ID information) instructedby the user from the mobile terminal 2 and an updating portion whichupdates the handwriting input screen in accordance with the receivedoperation content. Note that, this receiving portion corresponds to areceiving portion of the electronic device of the present invention andis realized by the control portion 14 b and the near distance wirelesscommunication portion 12 b of the electronic blackboard 1 b. Moreover,the updating portion corresponds to an updating portion of theelectronic device of the present invention and is realized as onefunction of the control portion 14 b of the electronic blackboard 1 b.Note that, also in the present embodiment, wireless communication suchas wireless LAN (WiFi) or Bluetooth may be used instead of near distancewireless communication. Though a basic processing flow of an operationinput method when the electronic blackboard 1 b is applied is the sameas the case of the image forming apparatus 1 a, description will begiven for some specific examples based on FIG. 10A through FIG. 10C toFIG. 12A through FIG. 12D.

FIG. 10A through FIG. 10C are diagrams explaining exemplary processingof the operation input system according to the third embodiment of thepresent invention. First, the electronic blackboard 1 b displays ahandwriting input screen 131 b as shown in FIG. 10A, that is, thehandwriting input screen 131 b including a handwriting input image 132 bon the operation display portion 13 b according to predeterminedoperation input by the user. When detecting proximity of the mobileterminal 2 in a state where the handwriting input image 132 b isdisplayed on the handwriting input screen 131 b, the electronicblackboard 1 b then transmits operation input information associatedwith the handwriting input screen 131 b in advance to the mobileterminal 2. In this example, ID information of the edit item which isset in advance by the user, here, a stylus color concerning editing of ahandwriting input image is transmitted as the operation inputinformation.

In the mobile terminal 2, operation input screen information associatedwith the ID Information of the stylus color, which is transmitted fromthe electronic blackboard 1 b, is stored, and the operation input screenis displayed on the operation display portion 25 in accordance with thisoperation input screen information. A stylus color edit screen which isone example of this operation input screen is shown in FIG. 10B. Thatis, black, red and green are displayed as the stylus color so as to beselectable by the user on the stylus color edit screen 252 of FIG. 10B.The mobile terminal 2 transmits operation content selected and set bythe user for this stylus color edit screen 252 to the electronicblackboard 1 b.

The electronic blackboard 1 b receives the operation content selectedand set by the mobile terminal 2 from the mobile terminal 2. In theexample of FIG. 10B, the stylus color “red” is selected and set by theuser, and “stylus color/red” is received as this operation content. Theelectronic blackboard 1 b then updates the handwriting input screen 131b of the operation display portion 13 b shown in FIG. 10A based on theoperation content received from the mobile terminal 2, that is, “styluscolor/red” designated on the stylus color edit screen 252 of FIG. 10B.Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 10C, a stylus color of thehandwriting input image 133 b which is input by handwriting to thehandwriting input screen 131 b is changed to “red”. Note that, a styluscolor of the handwriting input image 132 b which has been alreadydisplayed may be also changed with the same content.

FIG. 11A through FIG. 11C are diagrams explaining another exemplaryprocessing of the operation input system according to the thirdembodiment of the present invention. First, the electronic blackboard 1b displays the handwriting input screen 131 b as shown in FIG. 11A, thatis, the handwriting input screen 131 b including a transmissiondestination address input field 134 b on the operation display portion13 b according to predetermined operation input by the user. Note that,handwriting input is made invalid in a state where the transmissiondestination address input field 134 b is displayed. When detectingproximity of the mobile terminal 2 in a state where the transmissiondestination address input field 134 b is displayed on the handwritinginput screen 131 b, the electronic blackboard 1 b then transmitsoperation input information associated with the handwriting input screen131 b in advance to the mobile terminal 2. In this example, IDinformation corresponding to the transmission destination address inputfield 134 b is transmitted as the operation input information.

In the mobile terminal 2, operation input screen information associatedwith the ID Information of the transmission destination address inputfield, which is transmitted from the electronic blackboard 1 b, isstored, and the operation input screen is displayed on the operationdisplay portion 25 in accordance with this operation input screeninformation. A transmission destination address input screen which isone example of this operation input screen is shown in FIG. 11B. Thatis, the transmission destination address input screen 253 of FIG. 11Bincludes a transmission destination address input field 253 a and avirtual keyboard 253 b. Note that, the virtual keyboard 253 b isoriginally mounted on the mobile terminal 2 and is displayed incooperation with display of the transmission destination address inputfield 253 a. The user inputs desired address information (here, abc . .. ) by a touch operation for this virtual keyboard 253 b. The content ofthis operation input is reflected and displayed in the transmissiondestination address input field 253 a. For example, when a predeterminedtransmission button (not shown) is pressed by the user, the mobileterminal 2 then transmits operation content input from the transmissiondestination address input screen 253 to the electronic blackboard 1 b.

The electronic blackboard 1 b receives the operation content input bythe mobile terminal 2 from the mobile terminal 2. In the example of FIG.11B, “abc . . . ” is input by the user as a transmission destinationaddress, and “abc . . . ” is received as this operation content. Then,the electronic blackboard 1 b updates the handwriting input screen 131 bof the operation display portion 13 b shown in FIG. 11A based on theoperation content received from the mobile terminal 2, that is, “abc . .. ” designated on the transmission destination address input screen 253of FIG. 11B. Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 11C, theoperation content “abc . . . ” is automatically reflected in thetransmission destination address input field 134 b of the handwritinginput screen 131 b.

FIG. 12A through FIG. 12D are diagrams explaining still anotherexemplary processing of the operation input system according to thethird embodiment of the present invention. First, the electronicblackboard 1 b displays the handwriting input screen 131 b as shown inFIG. 12A, that is, the handwriting input screen 131 b including thehandwriting input image 132 b on the operation display portion 13 baccording to predetermined operation input by the user. When detectingproximity of the mobile terminal 2 in a state where the handwritinginput image 132 b is displayed on the handwriting input screen 131 b,the electronic blackboard 1 b then transmits operation input informationassociated with the handwriting input screen 131 b in advance to themobile terminal 2. In this example, a page list including thehandwriting input image 132 b, that is, a page list includinghandwriting input images P1 to P4 with the handwriting input image 132 bas P1 is transmitted as the operation input information.

In the mobile terminal 2, operation input screen information associatedwith the page list transmitted from the electronic blackboard 1 b isstored, and the operation input screen is displayed on the operationdisplay portion 25 in accordance with this operation input screeninformation. A page list screen which is one example of this operationinput screen is shown in FIG. 12B. That is, the handwriting input imagesP1 to P4 are displayed so as to be selectable by the user on the pagelist screen 254 of FIG. 12B. The mobile terminal 2 transmits operationcontent selected by the user for this page list screen 254 to theelectronic blackboard 1 b. Here, “P4” corresponding to the handwritinginput image P4 is transmitted as shown in FIG. 12C.

The electronic blackboard 1 b receives the operation content selected bythe mobile terminal 2 from the mobile terminal 2. In the example of FIG.12C, the handwriting input image P4 is selected by the user and “P4” isreceived as this operation content. Then, the electronic blackboard 1 bupdates the handwriting input screen 131 b of the operation displayportion 13 b shown in FIG. 12A based on the operation content receivedfrom the mobile terminal 2, that is, “P4” designated on the page listscreen 254 of FIG. 12C. Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 12D,the handwriting input image 132 b (P1) displayed on the handwritinginput screen 131 b is switched to the handwriting input image 135 b(P4).

In this manner, according to the present embodiment, the electronicblackboard is linked with the mobile terminal and screen transition ofthe electronic blackboard is eliminated so that various operation inputis able to be performed while confirming operation content from themobile terminal on a screen of the electronic blackboard.

As above, though description has been given by exemplifying theoperation input system, the electronic device, the mobile terminal andthe operation input method as each embodiment of the present invention,the present invention may have a form as a program for causing acomputer to execute this operation input method or a form as a computerreadable recording medium having this program recorded therein.

As the above-described recording medium, specifically, a CD-ROM(-R/-RW), a magneto-optical disk, an HD (hard disk), a DVD-ROM(-R/-RW-RAM), an FD (flexible disk), a flash memory, a memory card, amemory stick, other various ROMs and RAMs and the like are able to beassumed, and realizing of this method is facilitated by recoding theprogram for causing the computer to execute the operation input methodof the present invention described above in these recording mediums fordistribution. In addition, the operation input method according to thepresent invention is able to be executed by mounting the recordingmedium as described above in an information processing apparatus such asa computer to read the program by the information processing apparatusor by storing this program in the recording medium provided in theinformation processing apparatus to read as necessary.

Further, according to the present invention, the electronic device suchas the image forming apparatus is linked with the mobile terminal andscreen transition of the electronic device is eliminated so that variousoperation input is able to be performed while confirming operationcontent from the mobile terminal on a screen of the electronic device.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An operation input method of an electronicdevice, the electronic device having a display portion and wirelesslycommunicating with a mobile terminal, the operation input methodcomprising: wirelessly communicating with the mobile terminal in a casewhere the electronic device detects that the mobile terminal is inproximity with the electronic device and displaying a transmissiondestination address input screen on the mobile terminal while displayinga transmission destination address setting screen on the display portionof the electronic device; receiving a transmission destination addressset by a user for the transmission destination address input screen fromthe mobile terminal; and updating contents displayed on the transmissiondestination address setting screen in accordance with the transmissiondestination address received.
 2. The operation input method according toclaim 1, wherein when connection of the wireless communication with themobile terminal is established, the electronic device establishesconnection of other wireless communication capable of longer-distancewireless communication than the wireless communication with the mobileterminal.
 3. The operation input method according to claim 1, whereinthe displaying the operation input information includes displaying IDinformation of an operation input item associated with the specificscreen in advance on the mobile terminal, the mobile terminal isprovided with a storage portion in which operation input screeninformation associated with the ID information of the operation inputitem is stored, and the display portion of the mobile terminal displaysthe operation input screen in accordance with the operation input screeninformation stored in the storage portion.
 4. The operation input methodaccording to claim 3, wherein the operation input item is set by theuser in advance.
 5. The operation input method according to claim 3,wherein in a case where the electronic device is an image formingapparatus, the specific screen is a preview screen, and the operationinput item is an item concerning editing of a print preview imagedisplayed on the preview screen.
 6. The operation input method accordingto claim 3, wherein in a case where the electronic device is anelectronic blackboard, the specific screen is a handwriting inputscreen, and the operation input item is an item concerning editing of ahandwriting input image displayed on the handwriting input screen. 7.The operation input method according to claim 1, wherein the displayingthe operation input information includes displaying operation inputscreen information including ID information of an operation input itemassociated with the specific screen in advance on the mobile terminal,and the display portion of the mobile terminal displays the operationinput screen in accordance with the operation input screen information.8. The operation input method according to claim 1, wherein thetransmission destination address setting screen is not displayed on themobile terminal while the transmission destination address settingscreen is displayed on the display of the electronic device.
 9. Anelectronic device including a display and that wirelessly communicateswith a mobile terminal, the electronic device comprising: transmittercircuitry that wirelessly communicates with the mobile terminal in acase where the electronic device detects that the mobile terminal is inproximity with the electronic device and transmits predeterminedinformation to the mobile terminal to display a transmission destinationaddress input screen on the mobile terminal while displaying atransmission destination address setting screen on the display of theelectronic device; receiver circuitry that receives a transmissiondestination address set by a user for the transmission destinationaddress input screen from the mobile terminal; and content updatercircuitry that updates contents displayed on the transmissiondestination address setting screen in accordance with the transmissiondestination address received.
 10. The electronic device according toclaim 9, wherein the transmission destination address setting screen isnot displayed on the mobile terminal while the transmission destinationaddress setting screen is displayed on the display of the electronicdevice.